Musharaf Class Long-Range Ordinance Craft
The Musharaf (English: "Unstoppable") Long-Range Ordinance Craft was a revolutionary Ghaz vessel that shaped much of their society before the formation of the Ghaz Combine. Technical and Development History Due the lack of major bodies of water on Alealamia, the Ghaz species never developed naval warfare like other species. As such, they lack the concepts of traditional roles when designing void-craft. The Musharaf is a reflection of this, effectively designed as simply a giant gun with engines. The construction of this vessel changed the face of Ghaz warfare forever, and solidified Denizcilik Shipyards' monopoly on ship construction. Early partnerships with XuraCorp allowed it a competitive edge, and one could say the Musharaf shaped the political climate of the Guilds as the Vordr re-opened contact between the two species. While costly to produce, its massive long-range firepower threatened to eradicate battlesuits and drones from the theatre of space combat. As Denizcilik Shipyards sold the vessels to all sides, it became a deterrent, as it allowed guilds to effectively fire at each-other from one Lagrange Point to another. It was the invention of Anti-Particle Dispersant by Military Industrial Conglomerate that prevented the dominance of the Musharaf class as while its opening strikes were still highly effective, once the dispersant was deployed, greatly reduced their effective firepower. At the start of the Guild War, the Graviton Lance, designed to counter the proliferation of particle countermeasures, actually lead to the bulk of Musharafs to be left out of the war. As the ship is effectively one giant weapon, replacing such a device requires almost a complete rebuild. Furthermore, while the Graviton Lance was a deadly weapon, it lacked the range of its predecessor, allowing battlesuit and drone forces to counter it. A single Musharaf was built with a miniaturization of the dreaded Taqadam super weapon, though the ship was never used during the final battle of the Guild War. Following the battle, the vessel became a point of contention between the Ghaz Combine and Vorheimta. Equipment and Design Features * Many x Anti-Particle Dispersant Launcher: Fires a canister that can be remote detonated to disperse a cloud of material that absorbs the heat from particle weaponry. * β Nanolaminate Armor: In addition to its protection, this armor acts a an Active Camouflage system that allows the equipped vessel to be rendered effectively invisible to eyes and most sensors. The more complicated nanomachines that make up armor can replicate the vessel's surroundings to mask it visually, as well as deflect sensor waves and contain the ship's Ahab waves. However energy emissions, such as using the fusion thrusters or engines can reveal its position. Optional Equipment * Vordr-Pattern Energy Shield Generator: Vordr shielding technology proved paramount in turning the tide of the Guild War. Creates an extra layer of regenerating defense around the vessel. Due to size, shield emitters are much more easily produced for vessels than battlesuits, and could be considered standard following post-war refits. Fixed Weapons * 24x 80mm multi-barrel Shredder CIWS: The Shredder is a common Ghaz weapon that is similar to an automatic shotgun. It uses a plasma-based reaction to fire its shells, providing a cleaner combustion as well as being used to superheat the shot. This results both in increased range as well as lethality as the pellets are molten. Main Weapon Options * 1x Denizcilik-Pattern Mega Particle Lance: A 'true' particle lance and the original armament of the Musharaf. Unlike other Ghaz ship-mounted particle lances, this one is designed entirely for combat. Able to operate at extreme ranges and having a pair of dedicated Ahab reactors just for it. It is a fearsome weapon both as a defensive emplacement and for long-range harassment. It is this weapon that lead to the development of Anti-Particle Dispersant which subsequently reduced the Musharaf to a first-strike role. As such additional main gun variants have been produced. * 1x Denizcilik-Pattern Graviton Lance: Developed shortly before the Guild War, this weapon owes its origin to Ghaz research into artificial gravity technology. While the Ghaz still rely on centrifugal rotation for gravity, this weapon is a fearsome sight on the battlefield. Invisible to the naked eye, it fires a beam of heavy gravity, battering targets and forcing those in its path to collapse in upon themselves. While having only a little over 1/3 of the range of the Musharaf's original main gun, the Graviton Lance is not effected by traditional countermeasures. As such, most Musharaf's during the Guild War were actually occupied with refits for much of the conflict in order to capitalize on this new weapon. * 1x Aemal-Pattern Gamma Emission by Nuclear Explosion Stimulate Inducing System (GENESIS): This variant of the Musharaf was found after the final battle of the Guild War upon the ruined space fortress of Sakhra. Like the dreaded Taqadam super weapon used during the battle, it is a huge gamma ray cannon that uses nuclear explosions to produce a massive burst of gamma radiation, which is reflected back by an alignment mirror and focused by a second mirror on the cannon to create a laser beam. The laser fired by a GENESIS is sufficiently powerful that if it were to hit an Earth-like planet, it would wipe out a quarter of the the life on the planet. It causes humanoid bodies closest to the shot to inflate and explode. As such, the singular vessel armed with it has been classified as a Weapon of Mass Destruction and Vordr have been pushing for the Ghaz to dismantle such a horrific weapon. The GENESIS was not originally developed as a weapon. It was intended for launching ships to far away distances by firing a laser at the ships’ solar sail. Until the Vordr, this was to be the Ghaz's solution for interstellar travel. Category:Starships Category:Ghaz Combine Category:Twin Worlds of Rodull